This capstone course is a field-based internship designed to develop and hone the practical application skills of a Criminal Justice major. The course requires students to integrate the knowledge and skills gained from other courses in the program and to demonstrate the ability to apply their knowledge to new subject matter and practical situations. Students apply for an internship at a self-selected site and negotiate the terms of the internship experience with a site supervisor under the auspices of their faculty mentor. The internship requires documented evidence of eighty hours of supervised experience and practice in a field setting where criminal-justice-related knowledge and skills are applied. NOTE: Registration for this course, an internship, is by permission of Academic Affairs. Early registration deadlines may apply. Prior to capstone enrollment, students are expected to complete the majority of their required major courses. Students should consult with their advisor regarding specific major courses that may be completed with their capstone. NOTE: Students who were admitted to the college before Fall 2019 and have remained active in their original catalog year are not required to take IDIS 601.

Introduction to Critical Inquiry provides the foundation for an informed and meaningful college experience through the cultivation of intellectual curiosity. Through the study of media and popular culture and the completion of short writing assignments, students learn how to develop and scale a personally-motivated research question, refine their topic, determine effective search strategies for finding credible and appropriate information, and learning to recognize bias and logical fallacies. Important aspects of the research process are learning how to analyze different types of argument and to evaluate information sources from a variety of venues. Critical Inquiry fosters the self-awareness and intellectual perspective that are the hallmarks of well-educated persons and lifelong, engaged students in the twenty-first century.

What is the link between an academic degree and one's career or professional development? In this course, students explore trends in their field of study and connect them to their academic and professional context. Students synthesize and present their research findings though a variety of formal and informal written communication formats. This course reinforces critical analysis and strategic thinking skills for students developing their course of study, seeking professional advancement, or preparing for future graduate study. Students with a regionally-accredited associate degree do not have to take either ENG 420 or CRIT 501 as prerequisites for CRIT 602.

This course is designed for adults who have identified prior experiential learning equivalent to outstanding degree requirements through a systematic process of goal-setting and self-assessment in the context of degree-planning. Students use the conceptual framework of critical inquiry to demonstrate this learning in an eportfolio. For each course-equivalent credit request, the portfolio will identify the context for the student's learning in the subject matter, trace the progression of the learning over time, and explain how the learning is equivalent to a degree requirement. The student will demonstrate mastery of each learning outcome for the credit request and integrate the learning outcomes in a relevant personal case study in decision-making. Two credit requests that meet the criteria to be submitted to Academic Affairs for evaluation are required to pass CRIT 603. NOTE: Students within 16 credits of their projected degree completion date are not eligible to take CRIT 603.